POCATELLO, Idaho (December 4, 2021) – After a disappointing showing on Thursday, the Northern Arizona men's basketball team bounced back on Saturday to earn a split of the first weekend of conference play with a 73-70 victory in Reed Gym over Idaho State.
The Lumberjacks (4-5, 1-1 Big Sky) snapped their three-game losing streak with a lights out offensive showing in the second half, battling back from a 28-25 halftime deficit and erasing a lead as large as eight points. Meanwhile, Idaho State (1-7, 0-2 Big Sky) dropped its seventh consecutive contest.
"It's so important as a head coach to feel so good for the guys," said head coach
Shane Burcar. "We battled on Thursday night and it just wasn't working for us in the first half tonight. We made a couple of adjustments and scored 48 (points) in the second half. That just shows the character of our guys. There's growth happening right now, and the exciting part is there is so much more growth to happen this season."
After shooting making just 8-of-21 from the floor in the first half, NAU exploded for its highest-scoring second half of the season. The 'Jacks matched their field goal output in three-pointers alone after halftime, drilling 8-of-14 from behind the arc. It was part of an overall 48 percent field goal performance in the final 20 minutes.
For the game, NAU shot 43.5 percent overall and 50 percent on three-pointers. Just as impressively, NAU shot 92.3 percent (24-of-26) at the free throw line, including 16-of-17 in the second half.
Leading the second half charge was the tandem of sophomore
Jalen Cone and junior
Mason Stark, as the two first-year Lumberjacks combined for 31 of NAU's 48 points. Adding in redshirt sophomore
Ezekiel Richards' eight after halftime, the three transfers accounted for all but nine of the Lumberjacks' second half output.
Cone scored 20 of his game-high 24 points in the second half, knocking down 5-of-7 from deep with his trey giving the Lumberjacks a 65-60 advantage with 2:47 left. In his first start as a 'Jack, Stark finished with a season-high 17 points and put the victory on ice with five free throws in the final 37 seconds.
The Lumberjacks got out to a quick start with a 10-6 lead at the first media timeout with redshirt freshman
Carson Towt scoring six early points. NAU led by as much as six following a three-point play by redshirt junior
Nik Mains at 16-10 with 11 minutes remaining in the first half, but it would be Idaho State who would eventually take a narrow 28-25 edge into the locker room.
Cone scored the Lumberjacks' first five points of the second half, the last three on Cone's first three-pointer that brought the score even at 30-30 just over a minute into the second half. The Bengals answered though with the game's largest run, an 8-0 spurt, that put the home team ahead 38-30 with 14:59 to play.
Cone put an end to NAU's five-minute scoring drought, and Idaho State's run, with three free throws after being fouled on a three-point attempt. A pair of freebies by Richards finally evened up the score again with 8:33 remaining at 46-46. Idaho State would open up a five-point advantage before Mains knocked down a pair of free throws to give NAU the lead for good at 57-56.
NAU maintained the lead for the last four minutes and struck with the dagger in the final 90 seconds. With the Lumberjacks clinging to a 63-60 lead, Towt snagged an offensive rebound to extend the possession before converting on a second chance opportunity. One possession later, Mains drilled a triple to push NAU's lead out to 68-60 with 43 seconds left.
From there, Stark, who shot 9-of-10 at the line for the night, helped keep Idaho State at bay.
Towt led the Lumberjacks' efforts on the glass, notching his third double-digit rebounding game of the season. He finished a point shy of a double-double with nine points to go with 10 rebounds as NAU outrebounded Idaho State, 33-23.
Mains was NAU's third scorer in double-figures with 12 points. Richards recorded eight points and six rebounds, and was perfect at the line at 6-for-6, in addition to totaling two of NAU's four blocks.
Following a brief start to league play, NAU resumes its non-conference schedule next Saturday, Dec. 11 on the road at South Dakota. Tip-off from Vermillion, S.D. is 2:30 p.m. MST.
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